AIM: To study the effects of insulin and glucose on tissue-type plamingen activator (tPA) and its inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) secretion in cultured human endothelial cells. METHODS: Human endothelial cell line ECV-304 was cultured with glucose and/or insulin at different concentrations with or without hypoxic exposure. RESULTS: The tPA, PAI-1 secretion and ratio of tPA/PAI-1 increased in endothelial cells during hypoxia. Insulin and glucose increased the tPA and PAI-1 secretion in endothelial cells exposed to hypoxia, and increase in tPA/PAI-1 ratio was also observed at 4 h and 8 h. CONCLUSION: Hypoxia stimulates the release of tPA and PAI-1. Insulin and glucose also stimulate the tPA and PAI-1 secretion during hypoxia.

Objective To investigate the effect of low-dose hydrocortisone(HC)on hippocampus nuclear factor kappa B((NF-?B)),I?B expression in lipopolysaccharide(LPS)induced septic rats and the role of NF-?B signal transcription pathway in pathogenesis.Methods Fifty-four rats were randomly divided into 3 groups: control group(A group,n=6),model group(B group,n=24),low-dose HC treatment group(C group,n=24).The septic rat model was established by intraperitoneal injection LPS(1 mg/kg),as the intervention by caudal vein injection low-dose HC(6 mg/kg),each of B and C group was subdivied into 2,8,16,24 hours respectively after LPS injection(n=6).At serial time points,the animals in each group were sacrificed,brain tissue samples were harvested to determine NF-?B,I?B expression by immunhistochemistry in hippocampus.Results In B group: NF-?B expression was up regulated compared with A group(P

Objective To compare three kinds of irradiation treatment plans for cervical and upper thoracic esophageal cancer,in order to arrived at proper decision for the patient.Methods From February 2001 to June 2004,43 such patients were studied with three different simulated treatment plans made including conformal plan,conventional four-field plan and conventional two-field plan for every one.All plans were evaluated with iso- dose curve and dose-volume histogram.Results GTV on 95% isodose curve was 99.5%,98.2% and 87.4% in conforaml plan,conventional four-field plan and conventional two-field plan,respectively;PTV_1 and PTV_2 on 95% isodose with 97.8%,97.2%,94.8% and 95.8%,86.6%,73.7%.The volume of＞20 Gy dose of left lung accepted was 18.6%,17.2% and 32.3%,in conformal plan,conventional four-field plan and conventional two-field plan,respectively;the right lung received 20.5%,19.9% and 35.5%.Conclusions Conformal plan is the best in radiotherapy,as it can provide ideal dose distribution of irradiated target with adequate protection of the normal tissues.Conventional four-field plan,being easy to carry out,can replace the conformal plan in most situations.Conventional two-field has the most uneven dose distribution and largest lung volume irradiated.

Six bacterial strains were isolated from lead-zinc mine tailings with the age of about 100 years, and their phylogenetic position was determined by the analysis of partial 16S rRNA gene sequence. Three strains belonged to genus Arthrobacter, and were close to A. nicotinovorans and A. histidinolovorans. Other three strains belonged to genus Agromyces, and were close to Ag. mediolanus. All of them were resistant to Pb(NO_(3))_(2), CdCl_(2), ZnSO_(4), CuSO_(4) and CoCl_2. Relatively, minimal inhibitory concentration(MIC)of Zn~(2+) and Co~(2+) of three Arthrobacter strains was significantly higher than that of three Agromyces strains. Additionally, these strains displayed strong adsorption of Pb(NO_(3))_(2), CdCl_(2), ZnSO_(4). Averagely three Arthrobacter strains could adsorb about 400mg of Pb~(2+), 177mg of Cd~(2+) or 80mg of Zn~(2+) per gram of dried cells. Therefore, these strains were important candidates for application in bioremediation of heavy metal-contaminated environment.

AIMTo study the effects of sodium magnesium fructose diphosphate (SMFD) on free calcium concentration and nitric oxide synthase activity of ischemic synaptosome, so as to explore the protective mechanisms of SMFD on cerebral ischemia.

METHODSThe synaptosomes from normal rat brain were prepared by phase partition and cultured with oxygen-glucose deprivation to establish ischemic synaptosome model. The intrasynaptosomal free calcium concentration and nitric oxide synthase activity were detected separately after the synaptosomes were co-incubated with SMFD (1.3 mmol.L-1) or fructose-1, 6-diphosphate (FDP, 4.0 mmol.L-1) for 60 min.

RESULTSSMFD decreased the free calcium concentration and reduced the activity of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) of ischemic synaptosomes. Its effects were more powerful than those of FDP.

CONCLUSIONSMFD may protect neurons from ischemic injury by preventing intracellular Ca2+ overload and inhibiting the activity of nitric oxide synthase.

Animals ; Brain Ischemia ; enzymology ; metabolism ; Calcium ; metabolism ; Chelating Agents ; pharmacology ; Fructosediphosphates ; pharmacology ; Magnesium ; chemistry ; Male ; Nitric Oxide Synthase ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Sodium ; chemistry ; Synaptosomes ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo explore the efficacy and safety of Jieyu Anshen Decoction (JAD) combined with aripiprazole in treating chronic schizophrenia.

METHODSAll 100 patients with chronic schizophrenia diagnosed according to CCMD-3 criteria were equally randomly assigned to the study group (treated with JAD combined with aripiprazole) and the control group (treated with aripiprazole alone) for 12 weeks. The efficacy and safety were evaluated by Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and Treatment Emergent Side Effect Scale (TESS).

RESULTSAfter 12 weeks of treatment, the clinical efficacy in the study group was significantly higher than that in the control group, the PANSS score in the study group was significantly decreased with a higher speed and range of decreasing, becoming lower than that in the control group at the same period. But the difference between the two groups in scores of TESS at corresponding times showed no significance.

CONCLUSIONJAD combined with aripiprazole has definite effect in treating chronic schizophrenia, shows advantages of quickly initiating effect, high safety and with no harm for increasing adverse reactions, so it is better than using aripiprazole alone.

Adult ; Antipsychotic Agents ; therapeutic use ; Aripiprazole ; Drug Therapy, Combination ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Phytotherapy ; Piperazines ; therapeutic use ; Quinolones ; therapeutic use ; Schizophrenia ; drug therapy ; Treatment Outcome

Objective To establish the normal parameters of psychometric measures such as the number connection tests A(NCT-A)and digit symbol tests(DST)in assessment of minimal hepatic en- cephalopathy(MHE).Methods One hundred and sixty healthy volunteers(aged 25 to 64 years;educa- tional level＞9 years)were divided into＜35 ys,35～44 ys,45～54 ys and 55～64 ys groups.All of the healthy volunteers were assessed with NCT-A and DST to establish the normal value of age-related parameters,which can be used for diagnosis of MHE in patients with liver cirrhosis.Two standard devi- ation of the normal mean was used as a diagnostic criterion for MHE.One hundred and six cirrhotic patients were assessed with these parameters.Results The parameters of NCT-A were(25.1?4.6) sec in＜35 ys group,(32.1?6.8) sec in 35～44 ys group,(38.6?7.1)sec in 45～54 ys group or (49.3?6.3)sec in 55～64 ys group.The scores of DST were 49.9?4.7 in＜35 ys group,44.6?4.8 in 35～44 ys group,38.5?5.0 in 45～54 ys group or 35.4?4.7 in 55～64 ys group.Thirty one out of 106 cirrhotic patients were diagnosed as MHE based on these parameters.Conclusion The NCT- A and DST are psychometric assessments for diagnosis of MHE.Age-based normal paramerters of NCT- A and DST are needed to be established.

Objective　To explore the risk factors and causes affecting the operative mortality in esophagectomy patients with esophageal can cer. Methods　1400 cases with a curative esophagectomy for neopl asm of esophagus hospitalized from Mar,1973 to June, 2000 were reviewed. There w ere 31 died within 30 d or during hospitalization after esophagectomy as a group , and 1 369 survival cases, after operation, as another group. Sixteen factors t hat may influence the operational mortality were selected. A multi-variate anal ysis of these individual variables was performed by the computer′s logistic reg ression model. Results　The operative mortality was 2.2%(31/1400 ). The causes of death included respiratory complication 17 cases (including res piratory failure caused by pneumonia or atelectasis), 15 cases, and adult respir atory distress syndrome (ARDS) 2 cases, the mortality was 54.8% in the death gro up), anastomotic leak 11 cases (34.5%), Chylothorax 2 cases (6.5%) and postopera tive digestive tract hemorrhage 1 case (3.2%). The results showed that the major risk factors that affected operative mortality in cases with esophageal cancer were history of long-herm heavy smoking, duration of operation and the year of operational (P<0.05). Conclusion　To minimize operative mort ality of esophagectomy, some means must be noticed, including the reinforcemen t of the perioperative care, the improvement of anastomotic methods and surgical skill, reduing operative time as p ossible, disposing pulmonary complications in time and using respirator if neces sary.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the potential reconsideration of curative operative treatment for patients with unresectable stage IIIA (N2) non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

METHODSFrom Jan. 1999 to Dec. 2002, 76 patients with unresectable stage IIIA (N2) NSCLC were entered in this study. They had all been proved by chest CT, chest film and fiberobronchoscopy. Twenty-one (27.6%) patients were examined by mediastinoscopy. All the patients received two cycles of chemotherapy with NVB (25 mg/m(2), D1, D5) and carboplatin (300 mg/m(2), D1). All the patients were staged again three weeks after induction chemotherapy. Sixty-four patients who achieved partial response (PR) or complete response (CR) were allowed to undergo surgery. Twelve patients who did not responde to chemotherapy received radiotherapy instead. Of the 64 surgically treated patients, 56 (84.7%) had a complete resection and then received 2 cycles of chemotherapy using the same regime, 8 patients had an incomplete resection and then received radiotherapy for the residual tumor.

RESULTSThe median survival for these 76 patients with unresectable stage IIIA (N2) NSCLC treated by either surgery or radiation after induction chemotherapy was 18.6 months with 1-, 2-, 3-year survival rate of 64.2%, 39.4% and 25.6%, respectively. The median survival for the 56 patients with a complete resection was 28.2 months with 1-, 2-, 3-year survival rate of 70.4%, 52.5% and 38.6%, respectively.

CONCLUSIONPreoperative induction chemotherapy with NVB plus carboplatin should be seriously considered for the patients with unresectable stage IIIA (N2) NSCLC, It is suggested that, whenever possible, surgery should be taken as the first choice for the patients who show down-staged benefits that complete resection can be attempted.

Adult ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols ; therapeutic use ; Carboplatin ; administration & dosage ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; drug therapy ; surgery ; Chemotherapy, Adjuvant ; methods ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Drug Administration Schedule ; Female ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; drug therapy ; surgery ; Male ; Mediastinoscopy ; Middle Aged ; Preoperative Care ; Vinblastine ; administration & dosage ; analogs & derivatives

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the relationship between plasma trough level of imatinib and clinical outcomes in Chinese CML patients.

METHODSPlasma trough levels in 416 CML patients who received imatinib orally in six general hospitals were assessed. The correlations of imatinib plasma trough level with baseline characteristics including age, weight and BSA, and clinical response were evaluated.

RESULTS(1) Effects of age, body weight and BSA on imatinib plasma trough levels were not to be clinically significant. (2) Median imatinib plasma trough levels was 1271 (109-4329). Imatinib plasma trough level was related to dose of imatinib administration. Plasma trough levels at imatinib of dose < 400, 400 and > 400 mg were (969 ± 585), (1341 ± 595) and (1740 ± 748) µg/L (P < 0.01), respectively. (3) There was no statistic difference in imatinib plasma trough level with complete cytogenetic response [CCyR (1337 ± 571) µg/L vs no CCyR (1354 ± 689) µg/L, P = 0.255]. (4) Imatinib plasma trough level might be important for a good clinical response in some CML patients.

CONCLUSIONThere was a large interpatient variability in imatinib plasma concentration in Chinese CML patients. No correlation of imatinib plasma trough level with CCyR was observed. However, higher doses of imatinib were shown to attain greater trough plasma concentration, suggesting that imatinib plasma trough level might be important for a good clinical response in some CML patients.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Benzamides ; blood ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Imatinib Mesylate ; Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive ; blood ; drug therapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Piperazines ; blood ; therapeutic use ; Pyrimidines ; blood ; therapeutic use ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult